The potential of transgenic chickpeas for pest control and possible effects on non-target arthropods

Romeis, J and Sharma, H C and Sharma, K K and Das, S and Sarmah, B K (2004) The potential of transgenic chickpeas for pest control and possible effects on non-target arthropods. Crop Protection, 23 (10). pp. 923-938.

[img] PDF
Restricted to ICRISAT users only

Download (390kB) | Request a copy

Abstract

Chickpea, Cicer arietinum, is the third most important grain legume crop in the world, with India being the largest producer. Insect pests are a major constraint to chickpea production. In India, the legume pod borer Helicoverpa armigera is the major insect pest of chickpeas. However, sap-sucking insects that act as vectors for viral diseases and bruchid beetles in storage are also considered important pests. Here we give an overview over the different management options to control these pests. There is a growing interest in the genetic modification of crops to enhance their resistance against insect pests. Here we present the state-of-the-art of chickpea transformation and give an overview on the available insecticidal genes that could be deployed to increase insect resistance in chickpea. Prior to commercialization, transgenic crops have to be assessed for their effects on the environment including the possible impact on non-target arthropods, many of which are important for biological pest control. Therefore, the arthropod-food web in the Indian chickpea system is described. Possible routes through which entomophagous insects could be exposed to insecticidal proteins expressed by genetically modified chickpeas are discussed, and species that could be selected for pre-release risk assessment are recommended.

Item Type: Article
Divisions: UNSPECIFIED
CRP: UNSPECIFIED
Subjects: Mandate crops > Chickpea
Depositing User: Library ICRISAT
Date Deposited: 10 Sep 2011 14:19
Last Modified: 10 Sep 2011 14:19
URI: http://oar.icrisat.org/id/eprint/1268
Official URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cropro.2004.02.004
Projects: UNSPECIFIED
Funders: Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, Government of India - Department of Biotechnology
Acknowledgement: This study was compiled within the Pulse Network of the Indo Swiss Collaboration in Biotechnology (ISCB). Funding by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) in Berne, Switzerland, and the Department of Biotechology (DBT) in New Delhi, India, is gratefully acknowledged. We acknowledge the help from A. Das (AAU, Jorhat, India) while preparing the manuscript. We thank F. Bigler (Agroscope FAL Reckenholz, Zurich, Switzerland), T.J.V. Higgins (CSIRO Plant Industry, Canberra, Australia) and T.G. Shanower (USDA-ARS, Sidney, Montana, USA) for discussions and comments made on earlier drafts of the manuscript.
Links:
View Statistics

Actions (login required)

View Item View Item